Gujarat: Lok Rakshak Dal aspirants end protest after state govt accepts 20% waiting list demand

The long protest by the Lok Rakshak Dal (LRD) aspirants, an arm of the Gujarat police, ended on Friday after the state government accepted the 20 per cent waiting list demand.

The protest by Lok Rakshak Dal (LRD), an arm of the Gujarat police, came to an end on Friday after the state government accepted the 20 per cent waiting list demand of the aspirants. The Minister of State, Home, Harsh Sanghavi met the protestors today and said that the waiting list for admission will be released and a 20 per cent waiting list demand will also be accepted.

The Gujarat government is expected to make an official announcement in this regard in the next two days.

Sanghvi said, "This decision will help in generating more employment opportunities for the youth and we will operate a 20 per cent waiting list. We have received memorandums in which usually 10 percent waiting list is prepared. However, for the first time, a 20 per cent waiting list will be prepared. Apart from this, we have also relaxed the age limit. After two days, the Gujarat government will issue its first government resolution."

The LRD aspirants have been asking for this 20 per cent waiting list demand since 2018 and the fresh announcement came after Harsh Sanghavi met the protestors on Friday. The government has also announced the re-opening of the waiting list. The government's decision came in response to students, who demanded that the circular dated August 2018 is unjusitified.

Notably, the LRD aspirants have been protesting for a long time and in 2019, the then Home Minister Pradip Singh Jadeja, had announced 20% waiting list but it was not implemented.

Even in 2020, the Gujarat government said students securing cut off marks of 62.5 per cent in the written test will be selected for the LRD post irrespective of the category they belong to pacify the agitating women candidates. The government had also said it has increased the number of seats for candidates from all categories, while setting aside the contentious 2018 GR on reservation for women candidates for the post.

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